Drug infusion subassemblies are known which have an intravenous tube for administering a liquid, containing a drug, to a patient. Bubble-size determinators are also known which detect the presence of air bubbles above a minimum size entrained in a liquid flowing in an intravenous tube and which determine the volume of the sensed air bubble. Analyzers are known which alarm and/or output a shut-down signal indicating that a drug infusion subassembly is to be shut down if a calculated total bubble size exceeds a predetermined total bubble size over a preselected volume of liquid. The preselected volume of liquid is a preselected number N of liquid volume “windows”, wherein an integer is assigned to each of the last N windows corresponding to the total bubble volume of each window, and wherein the integers are summed over the last N windows. If the sum exceeds a fixed amount, an alarm is sent and the drug infusion subassembly is shut down. Data for the previous Nth window is discarded and replaced when data becomes available for the next-to-be-calculated window.
Conscious sedation systems are known which employ a controller for determining (or allow a user, such as a doctor, to determine) a delivery schedule for a conscious sedation drug and for controlling a drug infusion subassembly to intravenously administer the drug depending at least in part on the determined level of sedation of the patient.
What is needed is an improved air-bubble-monitoring medication assembly, and/or an improved medical system, and/or improved method involving monitoring of air bubbles entrained in a liquid being administered by a drug infusion subassembly to a patient. This invention addresses those needs lacking in known air-bubble-monitoring medication assemblies and/or known medical systems, and/or known methods involving monitoring of air bubbles entrained in a liquid being administered by a drug infusion subassembly to a patient.